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kemetic-dreams · 5 years ago

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AFRICAN PHILOSOPHY: THE FUNDAMENTALS OF ODINANI BY M.O. ENE

Odinani is anchored on the sanctity of Ani, the Earth Deity, INTRODUCTION

The Igbo traditional religion is a philosophy that has stood the test of time. To understand the basis for Igbo philosophy, we must understand first the Igbo concept of the Cosmos, a logical concept that makes few pretensions about the great unknown. This concept has survived the introduction of Middle Eastern religious beliefs and modern science. The Igbo belief is therefore both metaphysical and scientific as well as sacred and socioenvironmental. A very tolerant but conservative philosophy, its capacity for ecumenism is enormous. While not yielding an inch to mythical and unproven concepts of life on earth, the Igbo philosophy maintains an elastic but credible concept of the Cosmos and its constituents that is rooted in science rather than the traditional myths of some imported beliefs.

To the ancient Igbo, the Cosmos is an endless space of visible and invisible beings. This Cosmo is divided into four complex constituents, [Onwuejeogwu, 1975: The Igbo Culture Area in “Igbo Language and Culture,” F. Chidozie Ogbalu & E Nolue Emenanjo -ed.]:

Okike (Creation)

Alusi (Supernatural Forces or Deities)

Mmuo (Spirit)

Uwa (World)

OKIKE

The Supreme Being (Chi ukwu or Chukwu) is the God of Creation (Chi Okike), the Force that fires all forces. God in Igbo language is also called Chineke (“God in the morning of creation, ” or “the God who creates” or “God and the Creator” (duality of deity)… depending on perspectives). Chineke is far removed from the perception of mere mortals. This Supreme Power (Ikekaike) is neither a living-dead (ancestor) nor a spirit. It has no known physical form, yet indirectly impacts the affairs of the human world. Chineke manifests to our world as:

Anyanwu (the Sun)—Chineke is the mastermind behind the source of light, love and knowledge and, implicitly, earthly existence or life itself;

Chi (the godly guardian), the personal providence is a divine agents assigned to each human from cradle to the coffin;

Kpakpando (the stars) which manifest as the celestial beauty;

Enuigwe (the heavens), the home of all supernatural forces including the stars.

Chineke created everything visible and invisible. The concept of Chineke is incomprehensible; to know God is the end of knowledge, which is probably why the Igbo do not debate those who say their ancestors dropped from the sky — who knows! The evil forces that intrude into our lives and the physical forces of the universe are all put in place by the Supreme Force, the Godhead or Creator, for definite reasons and to coexist in harmony and multiply and or evolve.

ALUSI

Alusi is a supernatural force. Although the forces are neither human beings (mmadu) nor spirits (mmuo), they sometimes assume the attributes of human beings. Prof. Onwuejeogwu called them “being forces.” Every Igbo town has a shrine dedicated to its communal alusi; every other community respects the deity. A priestly clan usually ministers to the revered communal deity on behalf of the community.

MMUO

Mmuo is the spirit of ancestors who lived, died, and moved on to the great unknown, the other side of the realm. Hence, mmadu (human beings) must die to become mmuo (spirit being). If a man was good while alive, upon his departure he could become an ichie or nna-mmuo —a hallowed ancestor spirit or a saint. Ancestor spirits are more commonly known by the collective term “Ndiichie.” A respected, living elder can therefore be called ichie —a living saint. Ndiichie is also used for a group of accomplished and distinguished elders who uphold the morals of the society, dispense unquestionable justic, and preserve the culture of the community.

A woman who has lived a distinguished life becomes nne-mmuo. Those who have lived horrible lives, and those who committed unpardonable sins (ajo njo) or alu (abomination) against Ani — the Earth Deity, become ajo mmuo (evil spirits) or Ekwensu (Devil or Satan). The male ajo mmuo could be akaliogoli (a roguish spirit); the female counterpart could become either a mermaid (owummiri) or a bloodsucking amaosu (vampire) or some other gender-specific evil spirit. Some mmuo are so restless they come back to be born-again (ogbanje), not to make amends but to torment a mother, her family, and the community. [This must not be confused with the desired and celebrated “inouwa” or reincarnation.]

UWA

Uwa is our world, or the so-called “Mother Nature.” [Compare with Hausa: uwa = mother]. This is the world we live in, the visible universe that directly impacts our life. Uwa is made up of two distinct parts: Igwe and Ala.

Igwe is the firmament, and it constitutes of the following:

Ulukpu (the clouds);

Onwa (the moon);

Alaigwe (the planets);

Ikuku (the winds) —the totality of winds and airs that hold the earth in place and help to make it everything it is.

While the ancient Igbo philosophers might not have measured the firmament by any known scientific method, they knew that it is immensely bigger than the earth, that the earth is but a revolving part — not the center — of the universe. Hence, the popular phrase Igwe ka Ala, which is also one of Chineke’s many names, Igwekaala.

Ala: Ala is the physical manifestation of Earth Deity, Ani. It harbors four components:

Mmadu (human being) — Man and woman exist to perform specific functions in the complex equation of conservation and preservation of the species. Humans are the beauty of life; hence it has been suggested that the word is from “mma ndu” = the beauty of life.

Anumanu (animal) — Like human beings, animals have their specific functions in the equation of life;

Ofia (forests) Vegetation sustains both mmadu and anumanu.

Mmiri (water) —The “life” of fish and all other beings in all water bodies is dependent on the quality of water. When the Igbo pray, they pray for the “life” of water because it is also the life of fish, which invariably provides rich sources of protein for humanity. Therefore, pollution of streams in Igboland is a taboo. All community streams are sacred and water fountains are deities, iyi. Menstruating women should not step into communal streams to fetch water. In some communities, women of childbearing age are banned all together from fountains.

GOLDEN RULE

The Igbo are very particular about constructive coexistence on earth. In the saying, “egbe bere ugo bere” (Let the eagle perch, let the hawk perch), the Igbo express the golden rule of the religion: Live and let live. Some go further and add: nke si ibe ya ebene, nku kwaa ya (whichever says the other shall not perch, may its wing break). This supposedly “old testament” version seeks to ensure that whichever of the Earth’s components wants the other not to survive shall not share of the food chain and shall eventually become extinct — so that others may thrive well in the ecosystem. Hence, the protection of lesser lives is imperative to good existence on Earth. Indiscriminate slaughter of animals or killing of human beings is an abomination of the highest order. To kill a female being is even more atrocious because she assures the continuation and preservation of the species.

A “new-testament” version of the saying stipulates: “nke si ibe ya ebene gosi ya ebe o ga-ebe, (whichever says the other shall not perch, may it show the other where to perch); but, truly speaking, there should be no reason in the first place to deny another an anchor on this planet. This pacifist approach to the Golden Rule is similar to turning the other cheek. Whichever holds in anyone’s philosophy is acceptable. However, it is highly suspected that the original saying is simply: “Egbe bere, ugo bere.” Period. There should be no room for compromise on the desire of one over the other.

ANI

Ani, the Earth Deity or so-called “Mother Earth” is also called Ala (land), which is actually the physical manifestation of Ani. This gives an erroneous impression of Mother Earth as “earth” — a rugged land mass of fiercely boiling, molten core washed by bodies of oceans. It may be, but it is also alusi, the deity which made the evolution of the modern person possible. Its core spiritual component is Ikejiani (“the force that holds the Earth” or the force of gravity).

In Odinani, the reverence of Chineke or Chukwu as the Almighty God is so deep that mere mortals, while attributing all cosmic powers to this Head, do not normally bring petty petitions directly to the seat of Supreme Power. It is not only humanly impossible, the chances of success are slim because God cannot be manipulated in any way, shape, or form. Besides, there are so many forces to overcome from here to eternity that Ndiigbo deal with the forces they can either manipulate or with whom they can enter into peaceful pacts. But, most importantly, every life on earth is pre-destined.

The Igbo religion is therefore anchored on the visible, which is invariably controlled by the invisible Ani. We thrive and derive life itself from the bounties of Ani. What more could be as merciful as “Mother Earth.” It provides human beings with an anchor, a base on which Ikejiani keeps people without restricting their ability to move freely on land (ala); avails earthlings with nutritional needs; protects all creatures from extended exposure to the Sun by providing day and night and the seasons; drains the unrelenting onslaught of rain from the clouds; shelves the wastes and, with time, avails earthlings with useful materials to make the passage through life an easier ordeal.

Together with other interlinked forces of our world (uwa), supernatural forces (alusi) and anyanwu (the eye of light, life, and love), Ani controls the “day deities” (Eke, Orie, Afo, Nkwo) and the “year-force” (afò). The sun therefore does not “rise” nor “set” in Igbo philosophy: the Earth determines the length of days and nights and, with the moon (onwa), sets the months. Hence, there are seven weeks or 28 days in an Igbo month and thirteen moons a year.

The Earth Deity’s control does not stop here: its forces control agriculture and even the activities of good and evil spirits, which occasionally attempt to misdirect the destiny of human beings. For example,

Ifejioku or Ahiajoku (“the yam force”) is very important for yams to do well.

Idemmiri (“the water force”) is a being force that must be appeased to ensure healthy water supply.

Okeofia or Agwu-Ofia (“the forest-force”) also plays important roles.

The Igbo enter into pacts with these forces to take into their benevolence. The process is called “igommuo”(to placate/negotiate — not worship– spirits). Even Agwu (“the divination force” or the trickster alusi, which causes confusion in the life of human beings) can be manipulated in afa (divination) to yield good effects.

Evil forces affect our lives adversely. The extent of their intrusion into our laid-out life-plan or destiny (akalaaka) can be curtailed by the intervention of one’s Chi and also by the intercession of ndiichie (ancestor spirits). The Igbo therefore maintain a special relationship with their ancestors by offering sacrifices to please their souls and working hard for the good of the lineage. Dealing with this spirits and deities is known by the same term “igommuo” or “ilommuo” (“to placate or ask of the dear departed/living-dead/ancestor spirit”).

Ndiichie are not worshipped; they do not demand to be worshipped — they are not Chukwu, the Almighty God) to whom we owe praises and thanks. In fact, the term “worship” does not readily occur in Igbo theosophy. “Ifé alusi” (“to worship deities”) is a colonial concept introduced by Euro-Christianity. The Igbo considered it more appropriate to negotiate and navigate natural forces around them; the will of God cannot be manipulated or changed. They just need to get there without too much hassles.

CONCLUSION Odinani is anchored on the sanctity of Ani, the Earth Deity, a creation of the Supreme Creator. O di n’Ani literally means “It is anchored on the Earth Deity.” Hence, Igbo philosophy is sacred, spiritual, and socioenvironmental. The Igbo attitude toward Chineke is unlike that of Euro-Christianity: Chineke has no form that humans can conceive nor perceive. Those who follow the teachings of Christian churches and Muslim mosques soon find out that the fundamentals of Odinani are unwavering in every Igbo community. Odinani is about doing the right things; it is about following the dictates of our personal providence, Chi. Failure to do so, Agwu or other more potent evil forces take over our lives; we would keep running in circles and meeting bad spirits (ajo mmuo) or even Satan itself (Ekwensu). But once we are at peace with Chi, we shall be on our way to our destiny. Which is why the Igbo say: “I buru Chi gi uzo, i gbagbue onwe gi n’oso.” [If you walk before your Chi, you will do the race of your life.]

Source: http://www.kwenu.com/odinani/odinani.htm

#odinani #igbo leaders #igbo #igbo culture #african #african religions #kemetic dreams #chineke #ala #alaigbo

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amateur-theater-critic-blog · 6 years ago

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Do You Feel Anger?

Do You Feel Anger is an absurdist dark comedy play that revolves around an empathy therapist attempting to help a workplace, with charming figures like Nice Guy™, guy with the emotional capacity of a teaspoon, and a woman so used to their terrible behavior it’s sad. While beautiful and hilarious, it was disturbing and thought provoking

Do You Feel Anger is powerful and distinctly uncomfortable. The quintessential female experience I would never wish on anyone and yet nearly all have to go through at some point. It felt like a train-wreck from start to finish that I knew I couldn’t look away from or avoid. At some point the jokes only pulled nervous laughter from me. It asks the question “how do we change others without fundamentally changing ourselves at the same time?” And the play doesn’t leave any easy answers.

While the premise is beautiful and the style and idea nearly carry everything the whole way through, the play doesn’t have any plot. It’s just the life of a woman trying to do her job in a sexist environment, with some strange subplot about trying to connect with her mother on the side and yet losing her. So, without a plot it felt like a comedy skit that dragged on for too long. At one point I actually checked my watch for the time because I needed to know if it was close to the end.

The lighting is interesting. There are very abrupt lighting shifts between scenes, turning on all the white lights and then turning them off - nearly no fade, which, first time it happened, burned my eyes a bit. It worked for the vibe of the play, but it still happened, especially helping make the last part of the play, when there is a lot of play with the lighting, feel much more jarring. It’s very crisp, minimal lighting, perfectly suited for what is meant to be a work environment.

Sound is used pretty minimally as well, but when it’s there, it’s gorgeous. My favorite part of the sound design was when a bird was supposed to fly from house right to house left, and while there was no physical bird, you could hear the wings flapping from one side of speakers to the other, which I found gorgeous.

The acting is amazing. Playing Eva is Megan Hill from Eddie and Dave, and she is wonderful. All the other actors, as well, play their role fantastically and are used to their full potential by the director, Margot Bordelon. In the end, I feel like they were limited by the original play script more than anything. If there were a more overarching plot - more than the hints we get from the mother’s phone calls and slips in the character lines, it would be a much stronger production.

This is the kind of play I would see once, but would like to see more of.

Rating: 3.5/5

Tickets Available Through April 20th

https://www.vineyardtheatre.org/do-you-feel-anger/

Trigger Warning: At some point there are strobing lights on the whole stage, as well as a lot of vulgarity.

Cast and Creative

Sofia’s Mom/Janie -- Jeanne Sakata

Sofia -- Tiffany Villarin

Eva -- Megan Hill

Jon -- Greg Keller

Jordan -- Ugo Chukwu

Howie -- Justin Long

Old Man -- Tom Aulino

Writer -- Mara Nelson-Greenberg

Director -- Margot Bordelon

Set Designer -- Laura Jellinek

Costume Designer -- Emilio Soa

Lighting Designer -- Marie Yokoyama

Sound Designer -- Palmer Hefferan

#do you feel anger #play #theater #review #3.5/5 #it was okay #but could be better #amateur theater critic

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queenugobezeofficial · 2 years ago

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#AriseAfrica Across the shores of Africa. The daughter of Igboland, Queen Ugobeze ushers in the release of the long awaited music album; an Ancestral Tribute "WIND OF DESTINY". A Goddess Queen (Eze-Nwanyi) is born with a divine purpose to engrave a legacy of peace. In her statement, When the music of Africa beats in the wind, my blood pulses to the rhythms and I become the essence of my motherland; Africa is born in me. May my ancestors follow my traces to fulfill my destiny on Earth. Igbo Ndi Eze, Umu Chukwu Okike Abiama, Igbo Nwem Turunu Ugo! Turu Ugo!! Turu Ugo!!! #QueenUgobezeOfficial

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hardcorenaija · 3 years ago

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EBONYI: CHAIRMEN, SUPPORTERS OF TEN POLITICAL PARTIES JOIN DEFECT TO PDP IN EBONYI STATE

THE Chairmen and supporters of 10 political parties, weekend defected to the People’s Democratic Party, PDP ahead of the 2023 general election in the State. The defectors and their political parties include Comrade Osuja Sabastine, the former Chairman of the Labour Party and currently the Chairman Zenith Labour Party, Chief Mike A. Obiahu, the former governorship candidate of Zenith Party in the 2019 election, Hon. Ejiofor Chukwu, the State Chairman, Democratic Peoples Party, DPP, Inya Pius, the State Chairman, United Peoples Party, UPP, and Peter Ezeh, the State Chairman, Change Nigeria’s Party, CNP. Others include Isha Lawrence, the State Chairman, All Grassroot Alliance, AGA, Hon. John Ugo, the State Chairman, We the Peoples Nigeria, WTPN, Ekpa Jacob, the State Chairman, Hope Democratic Party, H.O.P, Ukpasi Cletus, the State Chairman, African Peoples Alliance, A.P.A and Okwa Friday, the State Chairman, Peoples Trust, PT. The decampees gave reasons for their defection during the Ebonyi PDP stakeholders meeting at Salt Lake Hotel, Abakaliki. Stakeholders of the party during the meeting pledged their loyalty and commitment to the success of the party at all levels adding that Ebonyi remains a PDP State not minding the activities of the enemies of the Party. Reading out the Communique of the meeting signed by 36 stakeholders including State and National Assembly members of the PDP in Ebonyi State, Senator Anyim Pius Anyim called on the security agencies to investigate issues affecting its members in the State. “As stakeholders in the project of building a peaceful, inclusive and prosperous Ebonyi State, we deem it necessary to seize any, and every opportunity, to draw attention to issues that are bedevilling our dear State, and capable of adversely affecting the well being and future of our state.” Read the full article

#EbonyiState #PDP #Politics

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naijablog · 4 years ago

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I Married My Friend And My Sister -Movie Director Mac Collins Celebrates 20th Weddy Anniversary (chinamaccollins) HAPPY 20 YEARS MARRIAGE ANNIVERSARY TO US.... CHIEF AND LOLO MAC COLLINS CHIDEBE. (Mr. China) UGO CHUKWU TUBELU NDI IGBO 1, I MARRIED MY FRIEND AND MY SISTER. ONE LOVE KEEPS US TOGETHER...❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️👩‍❤️‍💋‍👩👩‍❤️‍💋‍👩💑💑💑💑💑👩‍❤️‍💋‍👩👩‍❤️‍💋‍👩👩‍❤️‍💋‍👩🌹🌹🌹🥀🥀🏠🏠🏠🏠🏠🏠🏠🏠 @ifeomachidebe_ #topnaijablog#chinamaccollins#celebritygist https://www.instagram.com/p/CG6mb4EDsNo/?igshid=1dka4qygmp3zb

#topnaijablog #chinamaccollins #celebritygist

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globalworship · 4 years ago

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Nara Ekele Mo (Global Version) — Resonance and friends

A joyous brand-new song from friends with Resonance Band and Arts Release!

We are delighted to be able to offer this unique multi-continent, multi-lingual and multi-style cover version of the Nigerian Igbo song "Nara Ekele Mo" by Tim Godfrey. After two months of dedicated work by the project team, this is performed in ten languages by Resonance and friends, 37 people from Brazil, England, France, Indonesia, Singapore and Spain, who came together online for the first time ever — as the Global Resonance Multicultural Worship Collective. The core message of the song is taken from Psalm 116:12, "What shall I render to the LORD for all his benefits to me?" (Psalm 116:12 — ESV).

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LYRICS

English & Igbo You have done so much for me I cannot tell it all Narekele mo If I had ten thousand tongues it still won't be enough Narekele mo Chukwu na gwom’oria le, When You heal, You heal completely Narekele mo Chukwu mar'obi mu o Isi iyi nke ndu le Narekele mo

What shall I render to Jehovah? For he has done so very much for me! What shall I render to Jehovah? For he has done so very much for me!

Igbo Nara, nara eh, Narekele, Narekele mo Nara, nara eh, Narekele, Narekele mo.

Yoruba Iwo ni’yin ye, Olorun mi, Tewọ gba ọpẹ mi Iwo ni’yin ye, Olorun mi, Tewọ gba ọpẹ mi

Tamil எனக்கு எல்லாம் செய்தீரே (Enakku ellam seithiere) நான் என்ன செலுத்துவேன்(naan ena seluthuven), நன்றிகள் ஏற்றுக்கொள்ளும் (Nandrigal yeatrukollum). ஆயிரம் நாவுகள் (Aayiram naavugal) போதாது ஐயா (podhathu aiyya), நன்றிகள் ஏற்றுக்கொள்ளும் (Nandrigal yeatrukollum).

Bahasa Indonesia Tuhan yang menyembuhkan Kau sembuh sepenuhnya Ku t'rima kasih Tuhan tau hatiku Tuhanku ajaib Ku t'rima kasih

French Que pourrais-je t’offrir O Jéhovah? Toi qui as fait tant de merveilles pour moi

Mandarin 以什么报答主耶和华？(yi shen me bao da zhu ye he hua) 祂所赐的一切厚恩 (ta suo ci de yi qie hou en)

Portuguese Te agradeço oh meu Senhor. Te agradeço!

Spanish Te agradezco oh mi Señor. Te agradezco!

Mandarin 悦纳,悦纳我一切感恩 (yue na yue na wo yi qie gan en) 感恩归我神 (gan en gui wo shen)

English: Lord, receive our praise, Almighty God. Lord, receive our praise!

Igbo Nara, nara eh, narekele, Narekele mo

Ten languages together at the same time: Terima kasih, t’rima kasih (Bahasa Indonesia) Lord, receive our praise, Almighty God. Lord, receive our praise! (English) Ezkerrik asko, ene Jauna. Ezkerrik asko (Euskara) Reçois ô Seigneur, reçois Seigneur, reçois ma louange (French) Nara, nara eh, narekele, Narekele mo (Igbo) 悦纳,悦纳我一切感恩感恩归我神 (Mandarin Chinese) yue na yue na wo yi qie gan en gan en gui wo shen Te agradeço oh meu Senhor. Te agradeço! (Portuguese) Te agradezco oh mi Señor. Te agradezco! (Spanish) நன்றிகள் ஏற்றுக்கொள்ளும் எல்லாவற்றிற்கும் (Tamil) Nandrigal yeatrukollum yellavatrirkum Iwo ni’yin ye, Olorun mi, Tewọ gba ọpẹ mi (Yoruba)

What shall I render to Jehovah? For he has done so very much for me! What shall I render to Jehovah? For he has done so very much for me!

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PERFORMERS

Singers (‘tr’ indicates translators): Igbo & Yoruba (with English) | Coco Mbassi, Temi Adedoyin with Jonah Ulebor, Ugo Ulebor Tamil | Pastor Jeswin Samuel (tr) Bahasa Indonesia | Joseph Lee with Jessy Oskar (tr), Selma Amadea Ligin (tr) Mandarin Chinese | Anne Soh (tr), Job Tan (tr) with Amy Yen (tr), Jessie Tang French | Coco Mbassi Portuguese | Lúcio Santana (tr) Spanish | Ainara Adurriaga, Juan Arvelo, Rebeca Gestoso with Jahnn Cooper (tr) English | Anne Soh, Elisabeth Martin, Jessy Oskar, Valerie Martin with Danielle Fung, Jules Lawrence (tr), Mary Halsey, Tom Schwarz, Tim Fung Euskara (Basque) | Rebeca Gestoso (tr) +++

PROJECT TEAM

Check out: https://artsrelease.org @loveartsrelease (Facebook, Instagram, Twitter) @ResonanceBandUK WEC UK and Ireland https://www.facebook.com/loveartsrelease https://www.facebook.com/ResonanceBandUK https://www.facebook.com/wecusa

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Here is the original version from composer Tim Godfrey:

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darealgem · 5 years ago

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God is faithful... Always...🙏🏾 Welcome Nephew... Chukwu daalu O!🙌🏾 You are welcome o...🍾🥂 Thank you Chinwe and Ugo for my nephew🎊🎉💃🏾 Praise the Lord 🤰🏽🤱🏽👶🏽👼🏽👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Nna Nnoo!💕💞💗💖💓 (at Nigeria) https://www.instagram.com/p/CAsfMPWBQfv/?igshid=lh3rzre9zw16

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upshotre · 6 years ago

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Police Intercept 303 Cartons of Tramadol in Kano

The police in Kano have intercepted 303 cartons of hard drugs (Tramadol tablets). The Commissioner of Police, Mr Mohammed Wakili, disclosed while briefing newsmen in Kano on Friday. He said the interception was in continuation of the command’s effort to rid the state of all forms of crimes, especially dealing in hard drugs (Kwaya) and intoxicating substances. Wakili said on May 17, base on tip-off, a raid was conducted at No 157 Miller Road Bompai, Nasarawa Local Government Area Kano where a laboratory was located. He said that one Chris Metuh was arrested at the location named: Ugo Lab Manufacturing Company, with 303 cartons of tramadol tablets. On the same date, he said the command also arrested four suspected hard drugs dealers for allegedly dealing in drugs. Wakili said the suspects were arrested with one rubber of “suck and die”, two cutlasses, a breaking implement and large quantities of hard drugs. He said the suspects are: Aliyu Khalid, Ibrahim Alasan, Mohammad Ahmad and Chukwu Felix. According to him, investigation is ongoing and the suspects would be charged to court. Read the full article

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hopecel · 3 years ago

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Oklahoma! National Tour cast (pt. 2)

📸 by Matthew Murphy & Evan Zimmerman

#oklahoma!#oklahoma tour #sis #benj mirman #patrick clanton #hannah solow #hennessy winkler #mitch tebo #ugo chukwu #long post

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newsrustcom · 7 years ago

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Review: In ‘Today Is My Birthday,’ Love Is a Butt Dial

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Jennifer Ikeda and Ugo Chukwu in “Today Is My Birthday.” Credit Jeremy Daniel

Like sadomasochists, playwrights sometimes seek freedom through peculiar restraints. Beckett’s experiments in deprivation — his monodrama “Not I” stars a pair of lips — explore how much can be removed from the theatrical experience and still leave theater. Other recent…

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#birthday #Butt #Dial #Love #review #today

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turnuplagos1 · 4 years ago

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12 Sep. 2020, Financial Innovation with Ugo Obi-Chukwu

Financial Innovation with Ugo Obi-Chukwu – How SMEs can successfully navigate the effects of COVID1-19.

Venue: Zoom.

Date: September 12, 2020.

Time: 11am.

The post 12 Sep. 2020, Financial Innovation with Ugo Obi-Chukwu appeared first on turnuplagos.

source https://turnuplagos.com/2020/online-events/12-sep-2020-financial-innovation-with-ugo-obi-chukwu/

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mastcomm · 5 years ago

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‘House Plant’ Review: A Bizarro Breakup and What Comes After

In retrospect, Max might have stood a better chance had he washed the occasional dish. But on the morning of the day that his world comes undone, he finds nothing in the kitchen to hold his cereal.

“All the bowls are dirty,” he tells his girlfriend, June. “Can we share?”

“Sure,” she says, companionably, and they both eat out of hers.

Before you know it, she’s broken up with him, albeit not in anger. It’s more like a sudden, insistent fit of wistfulness, a yearning to become a different version of herself after almost seven years with him.

And in the fever-dream world of Sarah Einspanier’s “House Plant,” June (Emma Ramos) leaps — whoosh! — right into that new life, ditching a meal-kit delivery business in New York to be a TV actress in Los Angeles.

The baffled Max (Ugo Chukwu) is left to recover with June’s pushy pal Chloe (Molly Bernard), who decides, against his protestations, that she’s moving in, effective immediately. So what if he never liked her.

The heightened, bizarro tone of this comedy and its head-spinning speed of events so strongly recall the style of Will Arbery’s “Plano” that an algorithm would match up their audiences: If you enjoyed that play, you’ll surely get a kick out of this one, directed by Jaki Bradley as part of the Next Door at NYTW series.

You’ll like it quite a lot for the first third, anyway. Then it begins to sag, though the occasional sudden shifts into a hospital-drama world (whose amped-up disconnection from reality recalls Paula Vogel’s “The Baltimore Waltz”) jolt things amusingly.

Einspanier, whose “Lunch Bunch” clocked in at a slender 60 minutes at Clubbed Thumb’s Summerworks festival last year, goes a half-hour longer here, and it seems like more than that.

That’s despite a cast whose caliber makes you feel lucky to see them — particularly the reliably stellar Chukwu, whom I would watch in anything, and Bernard, who possesses the remarkable ability to wink without, seemingly, moving a single other muscle in her face. (Clubbed Thumb and the Play Company are bringing “Lunch Bunch” back in March, and once again Chukwu will be in it.)

Max, a composer trying to break into the hold-music market, and Chloe, a video artist whose well-defended heart is in danger of being breached by a musician named Agnes (Deepali Gupta), are as vivid as the creamy citrus green of Meredith Ries’s set.

With its leafy title flora sitting mutely throughout in a too-small pot, “House Plant” is about drama and domesticity, stasis and growth, online posturing and real-world pain. It’s about the building of emotional walls and their necessary demolition.

Written in what Einspanier labels as three movements, it is also an experiment with sound, including voice-overs (spoken by Gupta, who composed the show’s music) and effects. (The sound design is by John Gasper.)

“Do You Have Any Idea How Boring Life Would Be Without Underscoring,” Chloe says to June early on. It’s a statement, not a question, and the script’s emphatic capitalization is exactly how Bernard speaks it.

Even with underscoring, though, tedium can descend on a play that’s too diffuse.

There are just two moments of undisguised feeling in “House Plant,” and they come almost as bookends — quick, quiet and anchoring. This frenzied play could use more of them.

House Plant

Through Feb. 22 at the Fourth Street Theater, 83 East 4th Street, Manhattan; nytw.org. Running time: 1 hour 30 minutes.

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newyorktheater · 6 years ago

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In the first play of Clubbed Thumb’s 24thannual Summerworks festival at the Wild Project – the first summer theater festival of the season — the cast faces us a la A Chorus Line, except instead of singing “I hope I get it,”they recite “Veggie enchiladas with Clementine” and “Rice, steamed kale, spiced tofu.”

It’s only after several such culinary recitations that we’re told these people are members of a lunch group, each member having agreed to make lunch for everybody else once a week. It takes a little longer to figure out that they are lawyers in a public defender’s office, that it’s a taxing job – “Greg’s resilient,” says Tuttle (Keilly McQuail), “He never cries in the coat closet” – and that obsessing on food is what helps keep them going. Or as Jacob (Ugo Chukwu) puts it to Greg:

“I have low expectations, little faith, when it comes to the law, government, organized religion, things that fall under the umbrella of humanity and its systems. And so, I seek my jollies, my joy, my bliss, what have you – some semblance of control – in this one area, this one arena, of my existence.”

“Joy is a vulnerable emotion,” replies Greg (Jon Norman Schneider), who is the office philosopher.

The evolving scenes between Greg and Jacob are among the few anchors in this fragmentary one-hour play by Sarah Einspanier. “Lunch Bunch” is largely composed of group recitation, staccato dialogue, very brief and obscure references to clients and court cases, and only a limited sense of forward motion: The group adjusts to exits and replacements , to members’ allergies, new obsessive diets, and other small changes. There are many fleeting moments of humor. In one brief scene, Tuttle tells her colleagues she’s given up eating just about everything, and will slowly incorporate the dairy and beans and sugar etc. one by one back into her diet to learn “whatever’s been giving me occasional gas and near constant feelings of worthlessness.” In a later brief scene, she reports back to her colleagues:

Tuttle (Keilly McQuail): Turns out I’m not allergic to anything Mitra (Nana Mensah): Sorry Hannah: (Irene Sofia Lucio): Congrats

These skit-like interactions are interrupted by one long surreal and hilarious monologue by David (Mike Shapiro), dressed in a suit and under a spotlight. He explains how he was thrown out of lunch bunch and thrust into a late Stone Age savannah, where he struggles to survive. Despite his having been a vegetarian “ever since I learned one Big Mac requires roughly 600 gallons of water” he begins to long for BBQ.

“Lunch Bunch” is fully in keeping with Clubbed Thumb’s tradition of adventuresome fare, and is served well by the game eight-member cast of downtown theater regulars, and by Tara Ahmadinejad’s direction. She stages the characters sitting on their ergonomic chairs facing a back wall that has a single shelf, suggesting a row of sterile cubicles. Or she has them stand up facing us on the lip of the small stage, interacting with one another in small groups. Or they slide around in their chairs, or stare vacantly into the ether, or scream up at the unknown, or recite meals in unison. It all feels almost musical.

Click on any photograph by Elke Young to see it enlarged.

Lunch Bunch Written by Sarah Einspanier; Directed by Tara Ahmadinejad Sets By Jean Kim, costumes By Alice Tavener, lights By Oona Curley, sound By Ben Vigus, props By Raphael Mishler, production stage manager Alex Williamson Cast: Eliza Bent, Ugo Chukwu, Irene Sofia Lucio, Keilly McQuail, Nana Mensah, Jon Norman Schneider and Julia Sirna-Frest Running time: One hour, no intermission. Tickets: $25 Lunch Bunch is on stage through May 28, 2019 This is almost all sold out, so hurry.

Clubbed Thumb Review: Lunch Bunch, a chorus of lawyers obsessing on food In the first play of Clubbed Thumb’s 24thannual Summerworks festival at the Wild Project – the…

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